


Into You

by Frostly



Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Age Difference, Alternate Universe, Bear Hybrid Kim Jongin | Kai, Fluff, Hybrids, Kissing, Light Angst, M/M, Mating Cycles/In Heat, Mild Smut, Pining, Strangers to Lovers, Tiger Hybrid Kim Minseok | Xiumin, Tutoring
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-20
Updated: 2020-11-20
Packaged: 2021-03-10 02:13:35
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 9,345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27645988
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Frostly/pseuds/Frostly
Summary: Maybe accepting to tutor Jongin wasn't such a good idea...
Relationships: Kim Jongin | Kai/Kim Minseok | Xiumin
Comments: 8
Kudos: 82





	Into You

**Author's Note:**

> hello everyone! 
> 
> this story is very loosely based on the manga Ookami-kun wa kowakunai which is adoooorable! i don't read mangas often but i do recommend reading this one!
> 
> so, they're supposed to be hybrids in this story but uhhh when i started writing the first scene i kinda forgot about that totally not essential detail lol *facepalm* i wrote nothing about animal ears, tails... the usual stuff. but when i talked about it with my beta i realized i wasn't really feeling it, even when picturing minseok and jongin they didn't have ears and tails, and since the story worked even without them i just went along with it and you can think of this world as similar to the ABO universe. everyone is a hybrid but nobody has physical animal traits (apart from strenght and the likes) but they can shapeshift!
> 
> also, in the manga the whole conflict thing was about carnivores vs. herbivores, but as stated in the tags i made minseok and jongin to be a tiger and a bear respectively. they both belong in the category of predators but to still give the conflict a reason to exist i made jongin to be still a cub while minseok is a full fledged tiger. because everybody knows tigers eat careless little baby bears heheh <3
> 
> anyways, i had fun writing this fic even though things got rough a few times. i started and finished this in october but i spent almost a whole month going over it almost obsessively, reading it, changing it and tweaking it over and over. my god. but i wanted it to be perfect. regrettably, it isn't, but i am satisfied enough (knowing myself, i'll never be 100% satisfied with any of my works lol) and i hope you guys will like it nonetheless!
> 
> of course a thousand of thanks go to my wonderful beta. wouldn't know what to do without her
> 
> and now i'll stop blathering and leave you all to your reading. enjoy!

Minseok slows his pace down to a light jog as he reaches his apartment building. He forgoes the elevator and skips the stairs up to the third floor and finally stops in front of his door, catching his breath before keying in the passcode. 

Inside, he shuts off the music with a tap to one of his earbuds and slips off his running shoes, strapping off his cell phone armband as he pads over to the small open kitchen. He takes a bottle of water from the fridge and downs half of it in one go, letting out a heavy breath, and finishes the other half on the way to the bathroom for a quick hop into the shower. 

It’s a familiar routine, one he goes through every weekend. He gets his good dose of exercise and stress relief at the gym during the week ー as a tiger hybrid, he always has a lot of extra steam to work off, most bigger cat hybrids do ー but it’s his solo morning runs he enjoys the most, a chance to shut off his brain and let his body do the work. 

He comes out of the bathroom with a towel wrapped around his hips and another rubbing at his hair. He dresses quickly, putting on comfortable clothes, and goes back to the kitchen to make himself a quick lunch before getting some studying done.

The fridge doesn’t offer much choice and he makes a mental note to make a trip to the grocery store before he has to go to his friend Luhan’s house that evening. He’s debating whether to fry the leftover rice from yesterday together with some kimchi or make himself an omelette with his last two eggs, when his phone goes off on top of the kitchen island.

He takes it out of the armband and looks at the screen. It’s his mom. He answers with a swipe before turning back to the fridge. 

“Hello.”

“Hello, dear, how are you?”

“Hey, mom. I’m good. What about you?”

“I’m very good, we made jars in our pottery class yesterday.”

Minseok takes the egg carton. He’s out of kimchi, omelette it is. “That’s great.”

“What are you doing? Have you eaten?”

“I was just about to make lunch.”

“There’s the grilled salmon I made you this Wednesday in the freezer, remember?”

Minseok puts the eggs back and pulls open the freezer door to get the salmon. Thank god. “Sweet! Thank you, mom.”

“No problem, dear. I actually called you to ask for a favour.”

“Mh?” Minseok says, balancing the phone between his ear and shoulder as he oils a pan and dumps the frozen chunks of salmon in it. “What favour?”

“You know my bear friend, Seo Jiyeon?”

“Yeah.”

“She has a son, Jongin, remember?”

Minseok lowers the heat before covering the pan with a lid. He leans back against the kitchen island. He remembers Jongin, a sweet kid with gangly limbs and long hair, pretty shy. He and his family moved out of the neighborhood when Minseok was in his first year of high school, but their moms have never stopped keeping contact with each other. 

“Yeah, what about him?” 

“Well, he’s a senior in high school and he’s having problems with math. He’s a very good student but it seems math is giving him a real hard time this year. And I was thinking, who could help the boy out better than you? Your major focuses on mathematics after all. You could tutor him? I know you’re busy, but do you think you could do it?” 

Minseok gazes down at the floor, thinking, the smell of the salmon cooking rising in the air. He _is_ pretty busy, his classes take up the better part of his days, not to mention studying for them, but tutoring a couple of hours a week doesn’t sound too bad, and he isn’t averse to earning some extra coins. Squeezing Jongin into his schedule shouldn’t be a problem.

“Sure, I can do it.”

“Really?” his mother exclaims. 

“Yeah,” Minseok shrugs. “I mean, if his mother doesn’t have a problem with her son’s tutor being a tiger? He’s still a cub, after all, isn’t he?” 

Putting aside the fact that bear mothers are naturally very protective of their children, a bear cub left alone with a grown tiger would raise a few eyebrows in any case. Minseok wouldn’t blame Jongin’s mother for harbouring some reserves. 

“Oh, don’t worry about that, honey. I already mentioned the idea to Jiyeon and she was on board with it. She’s my friend and she trusts me and I always tell her what a responsible young man you are.” 

Minseok rubs at his forehead. His mother will never stop being embarrassing. “Alright, then.”

“Ah, Jiyeon will be so happy to hear this! She gave me Jongin’s number so you guys can talk to each other and make arrangements. Can you jot it down?”

“Yes,” Minseok pushes off the island and puts the call on speaker to make a new contact, entering the number his mother tells him and saving it. “Alright, got it.”

His mother gives a happy sigh. “Splendid. Thank you so much for this, Minseok, you’re the best boy.”

“You’re welcome, mom,” Minseok says, fighting the urge to facepalm. “I’ll talk to you later.”

“Bye, dear, I love you.”

“Love you too.”

Minseok ends the call and sets the phone on the island to go finish cooking the salmon. He plates it and sits down to finally eat, his taste buds singing at the first bite. Hungry, he wolfs it down in record time and then quickly gets to washing the dishes.

His phone catches his attention again as he’s drying his hands and he picks it up to thumb through his contacts. He might as well text Jongin now. 

**you** (1:30 p.m.)

_hello, this is kim minseok_

_your mother told mine you needed a hand with math_

_i can help you with it if you’d like?_

_i’m a math major_

Jongin doesn’t take long to reply.

**jongin** (1:35 p.m.)

_hello_

_yes, my mother mentioned this to me_

_i’d like that very much_

**you** (1:35 p.m.)

_great_

_i was thinking we could do a couple hours twice a week if that’s fine with you?_

**jongin** (1:37 p.m.)

_that’s more than fine_

_i have dance practice every monday, wednesday and saturday_

_is that a problem for you?_

**you** (1:37 p.m.)

_not at all_

_we could meet on tuesday and friday_

_5-7 pm?_

**jongin** (1:38 p.m.)

_perfect_

_where should we meet?_

_i could come over to your house if that’d make things easier for you?_

Minseok frowns at that. He would have no problem tutoring Jongin right here at his place, but he thinks that might be a bit of a stretch for Jongin's mom. A public place would probably appease her more. 

**you** (1:39 p.m.)

_that won’t be necessary_

_i know a café that is near both your high school and my campus_

_you can walk there_

**jongin** (1:39 p.m.)

_sounds good_

_i’ll see you on tuesday then_

_thank you so much for this i really appreciate it_

**you** (1:40 p.m.)

_it’s no problem_

_i’ll send you the location of the café_

_see you on tuesday_

Satisfied, Minseok puts down his phone and goes to his bedroom to study. 

  
  


***

  
  


Tuesday finds Minseok sitting at the café, a steaming cup of coffee beside him. The place is open and luminous, made up of square tables and tall windows that let the mellow afternoon sunlight drift through. Though it doesn’t lack customers, it never gets too noisy, the sound level keeping to a comfortable low. Minseok has been here many times and he’s always found it to be a nice change of pace from studying at the library or at home. 

His phone buzzes with a text and he looks away from the textbook he brought with him to pick it up. 

**jongin** (4:59 p.m.)

_i’m here_

Minseok texts him where to find their table, off to the right, and looks towards the entrance, where a boy is standing alone in front of the big glass door, backpack hanging off one shoulder and head bent over his phone. The boy looks up then, his gaze landing where Minseok is sitting. Their eyes meet, and Minseok blinks. 

A long time must really have passed, because Jongin is nothing like what Minseok remembers. His hair is shorter than it was, but falls right above his large eyes, a soft brown tumble. His face is not that of a little kid anymore, it’s more defined, with a sharp jawline, but still retaining a softer quality with a cute nose and a full mouth. He’s gotten taller too, his limbs having lost their gangly quality in favour of a slender, lithe body. He looks gorgeous, and to his horror, Minseok feels a stir of attraction in his gut. 

Jongin holds up a hesitant hand for a little wave and then makes his way over to the table, Minseok’s gaze following him all the way there. 

“Hi,” he says, lips curving into a tentative smile, and Minseok has to bite his tongue at how plump they actually are. “Kim Minseok, right?” 

“Yes,” Minseok gets out after a beat too long. “Yes, Jongin, hi.” He puts a smile on his face and gestures at the chair in front of him. “Sit. Please.”

He takes a sip of his coffee to regroup as Jongin sits, and forces himself to relax. This is fine, this is nothing. 

“Did you have trouble following the directions?” he asks. 

Jongin shakes his head as he slips off his backpack and gets out of his denim jacket. He’s wearing a soft looking dark green sweater underneath. “Not at all, this place is actually very close to my school. It took me only ten minutes to get here.” He smiles, and it looks more secure this time. He looks around with interest. “It looks nice.”

Minseok’s lips curve up as well. “Yeah, it is. I come here often, alone or with friends. It’s a great place.” 

A beat of silence follows, where they just look at each other, smiling, until Minseok realizes what he’s doing and straightens up, clearing his throat. 

“So,” he begins. “Math.” 

Jongin’s smile disappears and he groans. It's _cute_. “My nemesis. We really don’t get along. I’ve managed up until now, with the help of my friends, but this year I’m _really_ struggling.” 

Minseok can’t help a chuckle. “That’s alright, I’m here to help. What are you doing in class right now?”

“Logarithms,” Jongin sighs, a miserable look on his face, and bends over to dig into his backpack, pulling out a textbook, a notebook and a pencil case. “They looked doable at first, but then they just stopped making any kind of sense. I’ve asked my friends for help explaining them to me, but I couldn’t understand anyways. I’ve even tried a bunch of video lessons online but those didn’t work either. I just don’t get it!”

He looks right at Minseok, lips pursing into a pout as his brow furrows, and Minseok feels pinned down by the sight, his heart stopping abruptly in his chest for a second. That is… beyond adorable. Minseok has to swallow and clear his throat ー _again_ ー before he can open his mouth to speak. 

“Okay,” he nods and reaches over to take Jongin’s notebook. “No need to stress. Logs can be daunting, and how they teach them in school doesn’t help, but they’re actually very simple, very mechanical things. It just takes some practice. Here,” he stands up and drags his chair next to where Jongin is sitting, opening the notebook between them. “I’ll explain the basic idea first and then we can try doing some exercises.”

“O-Okay,” Jongin nods, his eyes fixed on the blank page, and quietly passes him a pen. His cheeks look a little flushed, a fact Minseok lends a second of consideration before forcing his eyes off Jongin. There’s work to do. 

They spend the first hour going through the concept and the solution process, Minseok making sure to stop and explain again whenever Jongin looks lost as he walks him through the steps. Overall, it goes pretty well. Jongin is smart and attentive and Minseok finds he is actually very quick to catch on things, he just needs a little more confidence. 

The only complication is Minseok himself. He finds it a little too hard to look away from Jongin’s face when they’re sitting so close together, and especially when he lets Jongin try on his own and only has to keep an eye on what the little bear is doing. Jongin pouts a lot when concentrating. A _lot_. But Minseok does his best to be professional and focus on what he has to do. 

“Good job!” he praises when Jongin successfully solves an exercise all by himself for the third time in a row. He feels proud, probably too proud considering they don’t really know each other. 

It makes Jongin smile shyly, his bangs falling into his eyes as he ducks his head. “Thank you. I think I’m getting the hang of it. Hey, um, do you mind if I eat something?” he asks. “I didn’t get a chance to before coming here.” 

Minseok nods distractedly as he turns the page of the textbook to find more exercises. “Yeah, sure.”

“Thank you,” Jongin murmurs and puts down his pen to dig through his backpack again. 

He comes back up with a single wrapped bun of some sort in his hand, and when Minseok glances towards him, his brain short circuits from cuteness overload because he can clearly smell that that bun is made of _honey_. 

Honey. Jongin, a bear cub, eating a snack made of honey. Fuck. 

Jongin notices him staring as he chews, and stops, licking his lips, and the cutest little pink tongue makes its brief appearance. “It’s a honey bun,” he says with a sheepish smile. “Um, I really like honey.” 

Minseok is having a little trouble putting words together. 

“It’s good!” Jongin insists, mistaking Minseok’s silence for judgment. “Here, try it!” He tears a bite from the bun and holds it up to Minseok.

Mechanically, Minseok takes it and pops it into his mouth. A surprised hum escapes from his lips as he chews. The bun tastes rich and sweet, and it’s so soft that it melts on his tongue. “It’s good.”

The smile Jongin gives him is positively blinding, making his eyes crinkle, and god, when will Minseok get a break?

“Right?” Jongin gushes. “They’re even better after you microwave them.”

They get back to work after that. They make some more progress and even go through a couple of the harder problems, and when Minseok looks towards the windows, he sees it’s already gotten dark outside. A quick check on his phone tells him it’s actually a couple of minutes past seven, and he decides to end the session there. He can see Jongin is getting tired too.

“I’m going to give you these to do at home, alright?” he says as he marks a few exercises with a pencil. “If you have any problems, you can shoot me a text anytime, I’ll help you. How are you feeling after this first session?” 

Jongin stretches his arms with a tired hum and sinks into his chair. “Okay. I thought it’d go worse,” he says with a snort. “But you’re very good at explaining this stuff. You do it in a way that makes it look possible. It doesn’t make my brain hurt.” 

Minseok smiles and closes the textbook, looking up at him. “I’m glad. You’re much better at this than you think, Jongin.” 

“Ugh,” Jongin waves a hand, as if to chase away the words, and takes the textbook to start packing his things. “I’m just glad I probably won’t fail this class.”

Minseok chuckles. “You won’t.” 

Outside, the air is chilly and Jongin buttons his jacket all the way up to his chin. Minseok considers offering his scarf, but then thinks better of it. 

“Well,” Jongin says. Standing like this, across from each other, Minseok notices Jongin is taller than he is. He catches his smile before it can show. “Thank you for today, sunbaenim.”

“You can call me hyung, you know.”

“Really?” Jongin looks at him with a smile that lights up his eyes. “Okay, then. Minseok hyung,” he says shyly.

 _Fuck_. Minseok feels his heart do a stupid flip in his chest and quickly steers the conversation to safer waters. 

“Where do you live? I’ll walk you home.” 

Jongin shakes his head. “Oh, no, you don’t have to do that, I can go by myself!”

“It’s alright, it’s gotten pretty late,” Minseok waves him off. “And I’m sure your mom would like it better if I came with you.”

Jongin huffs, eyes rolling, and it makes Minseok smile. “My mom needs to understand that I may be a bear cub but I'm not a _baby_.”

Minseok laughs. “C’mon, where are you headed?”

“I take the subway.”

“Oh, I do too. Let’s go then.”

The subway is only a block ahead, shops and cafés closing down for the evening to give way for the bars and pubs. 

“So,” Minseok says as they walk past a convenience store. “You mentioned you dance?” 

“Oh, yeah,” Jongin nods, his hands stuffed in the pockets of his jacket. Minseok really wants to offer his scarf, but he doesn’t know if this isn’t just his tiger instincts kicking in. And if it is, he doesn’t want to think about what _kind_ of instincts they are. “I go to a dance studio near my school.”

“What do you do?”

“Hip hop and contemporary dance, but I’ve also done jazz and ballet.”

“Really?

“Mh mh, I started doing ballet when I was eight.”

Minseok looks at him, with more than a little admiration. “That’s impressive.” 

Pink flushes Jongin’s cheeks and he gives a flustered laugh as they descend the subway’s stairs. “I love dancing.”

They swipe their cards and have to hurry down the long escalator to catch the subway before it leaves, plopping down on the plastic seats with a huff and a laugh. 

“So, you have practice three days a week?”

“Yeah,” Jongin answers as he puts his backpack in between his legs. “But the studio is open everyday, so I like to swing by for a couple of hours other days too.”

Minseok hums in understanding. “You’re very dedicated.”

Jongin smiles, fingers playing with a strap of his backpack. He looks at Minseok. “What about you? Do you have any hobbies or stuff like that?”

“Not really, you could say my week is pretty ordinary,” Minseok shrugs. “I go to class, meet with my friends. I’m pretty busy doing research with my uni. I go to the gym often, but that’s pretty much it.”

Jongin’s eyes drift down to his body as he says that, and Minseok fights the urge to puff out his chest. 

Jongin clears his throat softly. “What kind of research?”

“Oh, well, mostly theorem proving and problem solving. We analyze open theorems and problems and the various solutions that have been attempted. So basically I spend a lot of my time looking at numbers and trying to figure out why they don't work,” Minseok chuckles. “Sometimes our researches get published, sometimes not.”

Jongin is looking at him with big eyes. “That’s impressive too.”

Minseok smiles at him, and he doesn’t know how it’s possible, but he feels so _fond_. “Thank you.”

They keep talking the whole ride. The subway stops and starts again, people shuffle in and shuffle out, but they barely take notice. They're having such a good time that Minseok kind of forgets where he is, until Jongin’s eyes fall on the stop display behind Minseok’s shoulder and he lets out a gasp. 

“That’s my stop!” he says, grabbing his backpack as he moves to get up, but then something seems to hit him and he turns guilty eyes at Minseok. “Wait, no, did you miss your stop because of me? I’m so sorry!”

“No, actually... this is also my stop.”

“Really?”

“Yeah,” Minseok chuckles. 

“Oh,” Jongin blinks. “Well,” he fidgets, gives Minseok a shy smile. “I’m glad.”

Minseok wonders briefly if Jongin’s glad that they share a stop, or simply that Minseok didn’t miss his. Dangerous silly thoughts, that he leaves on the subway as they get off. They stop at the top of the stairs outside, looking at each other, stalling for a moment. 

“I’ll walk you,” Minseok says. 

“ _Hyung_.”

“I insist.”

“But it’s late!”

“Precisely.”

Jongin lets out a groan. “You are very stubborn,” he accuses, his eyes narrowed, but the effect is ruined by the smile that’s pulling at his lips, and he turns around to walk into a side street. 

Minseok smiles at his back and follows after him. 

The more they walk, the more familiar the surroundings get, until Minseok finds himself walking a street he passes by everyday. 

“This is me,” Jongin says as he stops in front of the small entrance gate of an apartment building. 

Minseok breathes out a surprised laugh. “We live close to each other.”

“Huh?” 

“We do,” Minseok nods, amused, and points to his left. “My apartment is just a couple of streets over this way, round that corner.” 

Jongin’s eyes widen as he looks down the softly lit street. “That’s crazy. I’ve never seen you around.”

“Me neither.” A sudden breeze gusts by then, and Minseok stuffs his hands into his jeans pockets. “Get inside, now, it’s getting cold. I’ll see you on Friday.” 

“You get home safe too, hyung,” Jongin says. “Thank you again for today, and thank you for walking with me too, even though it wasn’t necessary,” he flashes a pointed eyebrow. 

Minseok smiles and watches him key open the gate and slip through it, but Jongin stops before closing it behind himself, and turns around. 

“Bye,” he says softly with a little wave.

Minseok waves back. “Bye, Jongin.”

The gate closes and he turns to make his way to his apartment, the smile still grazing his lips. 

***

  
  


Minseok never would have imagined that accepting to tutor his mother’s friend’s son would bring a new, complicated twist to his life. He has managed to fit Jongin’s tutoring into his schedule just fine, but three weeks of this and Minseok is barely managing. Not even going to the gym helps anymore and his morning runs do nothing but leave him restless, his mind too free to wander and inevitably land on Jongin. 

Embarrassingly enough, Tuesday and Friday have become the days of the week he looks forward to the most. Even while they work, spending time with Jongin is fun and easy. Too easy. And Minseok finds it hard to ignore the pull that draws him to the little bear. He does his best, because he’s not about to do anything inappropriate, but it’s not easy, so not easy when Jongin is so sweet and smart and funny and so _beautiful_. 

So, yeah, Minseok has a problem and he doesn’t see any immediate way to solve it other than living with it until Jongin doesn’t need his tutoring anymore. As a mathematician, Minseok likes problems, he likes not having the solution at hand and having to work for it. Problems are riddles, riddles that he can solve and then use to solve other, more complex riddles, and they’re _fun_. But this time? Not fun. Not fun at all. 

“Frozen yogurt.”

Minseok is pulled away from his thoughts by Luhan’s voice. 

“What?” 

“I want frozen yogurt,” Luhan says, nodding towards the stall further down. The mall is packed as usual, a constant coming and going of people carrying varying numbers of shopping bags, their shoes squeaking on the shiny floor. “You coming?” 

“No,” Minseok waves his hand absently. “I’m just going to find a bench and wait for you there.”

“Alright,” Luhan says, readjusting his own shopping bags hanging on his arms. “Go ahead and keep brooding, but don’t think you can steal some of my yogurt when I get back.” He gives Minseok a pointed look ー it amazes Minseok how his friend can look so much like the fox he is in moments like this ー before going to join the line at the stall. 

Minseok snorts at him and sets off to find a bench that’s not too far. Luckily, he finds one soon enough. Unluckily, he has to give it up to an ajumma, who has no qualms about taking up all the space with her bags. 

With a sigh, Minseok resigns himself to having to wait while standing. He turns to the nearest shop and walks up to the display window, disinterestedly peering inside it, when his eyes catches sight of a familiar figure. 

Jongin is inside the shop, standing by the eyewear display together with two other boys that Minseok figures to be his friends, laughing as they try on ugly sunglasses.

Minseok stalls as he debates what to do. He could leave it alone and go see if Luhan is done, or he could go inside and say hi. There would be nothing wrong with that, he and Jongin know each other, it’d be only normal, expected even. 

Minseok’s body moves before he’s even finished that thought. 

He walks over to the trio, a smile tugging at his lips as he sees Jongin putting on a pair of ridiculously huge black sunglasses that make him look like a fly and proceeding to dissolve into giggles, and stops behind him.

“Jongin.” 

Jongin whips around at that and his jaw drops on a gasp when he sees Minseok standing before him. Before Minseok can even blink, Jongin disappears from in front of his eyes and in his place appears a brown bear cub, huddled on the floor in a pile of clothes, the ugly sunglasses dropping beside it with a clatter. 

Minseok gapes down at it, his mind trying to make sense of the fact that he accidentally spooked Jongin into shifting into his animal form, _and_ the fact that Jongin in his animal form looks _adorable_.

“Oh no,” Jongin’s friends say as they take off their glasses, but they don’t sound too concerned, instead looking as if they’re holding back their laughter. “We should get him to the changing rooms so he can shift back.”

“Y-Yeah,” Minseok nods and bends down to pick up Jongin, who lets out a keening sound as he’s lifted off the floor. Jongin weighs nothing like this, and as Minseok holds him up in front of himself, he can’t help getting kind of lost staring into those black, liquid eyes, a loop of “cute, cute, cute” running through his mind. Until he remembers that this is actually a pretty urgent situation. There’s a certain vulnerability in being in one’s animal form, a certain privacy, it’s not something to show too easily, and there are regulations to follow when turning in public.

Pulling Jongin to his chest, Minseok hurries to the changing rooms and slips the little bear into one along with his clothes and shoes, tugging the curtain close and forcing himself to stop thinking about how incredibly soft Jongin’s fur had felt against his fingers as he waits. 

Jongin re-emerges a few minutes later, in human form and blushing up to his ears. 

“I’m so sorry, Jongin,” Minseok says, feeling guilty. “I didn’t mean to sneak up on you.”

“It’s okay, hyung,” Jongin mumbles without looking Minseok in the eye. “I was just surprised, is all…” 

They make their way out of the changing rooms. 

“Um, so you came to the mall too today?” Jongin asks. 

“Yeah, a friend wanted to buy new shoes, so I came with him. You?” 

“Just hanging out with my friends, wasting some time before we need to go to the studio.” 

This is awkward. Great job, Minseok. 

“Um,” Jongin says when they reach his friends. “Hyung, these are my friends, Sehun and Taemin. Guys, this is Minseok hyung, he’s the one tutoring me in math.”

“Yeah, we figured,” the taller one, Sehun, says cryptically, his words making pink rise on Jongin’s cheeks again, Jongin shooting him a glare, and he and Taemin bow at Minseok in greeting. 

It makes Minseok frown in confusion, but he doesn’t stop to dwell on it, and gives the two a bow of his head in return. “Alright,” he says, turning back to Jongin. “I just wanted to say hi.” And that went so incredibly well. “Sorry again. I’ll see you on Tuesday?” 

He gives Jongin his best smile, one that he hopes will smooth over what happened, and he’s thrilled to see Jongin returning it. 

“Yes,” Jongin nods. “Bye, hyung.”

With one last goodbye, Minseok exits the shop, only to find Luhan standing outside of it, watching the scene unfold as he eats his frozen yogurt. 

“Was that the untouchable bear cub you told me about?” he asks from around his spoon. 

“Yeah,” Minseok says, grabbing him by the arm to make him walk. 

“He’s cute.”

Understatement of the century. 

“Yeah.” 

“You looked awkward as fuck.”

Understatement… of the century… 

“... Yeah.” 

***

  
  


The silence is a comfortable one as they walk through the streets of their neighborhood after yet another session. The air has gotten colder and colder as winter approaches and it nips at their faces, turning Jongin’s cheeks and the tip of his nose a cute red. 

They stop when in front of Jongin’s gate. Minseok would linger like they usually do, but their session ran longer than usual because of Jongin’s upcoming test and it’s already pretty late, Jongin’s parents must be waiting for him, so he offers a smile and a wave. 

“Go get some rest, Jongin, you worked hard today. See you on Friday, okay?” 

Jongin nods and when it seems that that's all he's going to get, Minseok turns to go home, a little perplexed, and maybe even the tiniest bit disappointed.

He manages only one step before he’s stopped by Jongin’s voice calling him.

“Hyung!”

Minseok turns around. “Yeah?”

Jongin is playing with his keys, looking anywhere but at him, his mouth covered by the scarf that Minseok finally offered him earlier, giving in to himself. 

“Um…” he says after a moment. “Are you hungry?”

The question catches Minseok off guard. “Yeah.” 

“Do you want to come in and eat something?” 

Minseok blinks at him, but Jongin barrels on before he can say a word. 

“My parents aren’t home so… and my mom cooked me dinner but it’s too much for me alone to eat. And I-I mean, this would be my thank you? You stayed with me longer than you should have to help me today, so…” 

He closes his mouth and looks up at Minseok, his large eyes both nervous and hopeful, and Minseok finds himself answering before he can even think about it. 

“Yeah,” he nods. “Yeah, alright.”

He’s rewarded by the most blinding smile. 

“Okay,” Jongin chirps, eyes curved happily, and turns around to key open the gate. 

Minseok follows after him, still unsure about what just happened. 

Jongin’s apartment is on the fourth floor, a nice place that looks well lived as Minseok’s eyes flit about, taking in the space. 

“So you _do_ have scarves,” he says jokingly when they fall on the coat rack just by the door.

Jongin gives a sheepish laugh as he takes off his jacket. “I just forget to put one on when I go out.” 

In the kitchen, Jongin goes straight to the stove, where a large pot is sitting by itself. 

“Is bean paste stew okay?”

“It’s perfect,” Minseok smiles, leaning back against the counter. 

Jongin returns a shy one before turning on the heat. “It shouldn’t take more than a couple of minutes.” 

Minseok’s smile doesn’t wane as he watches Jongin putter about the kitchen, insisting that Minseok doesn't need to help when he offers and that he can do everything by himself. They eat the stew when it’s piping hot, Minseok praising Jongin’s mom cooking skills, and dinner is a leisurely thing, spent in easy conversation, as the time they spend together always is. 

When Jongin busies himself with washing the dishes after they’re done, Minseok gets up as well and goes to stand behind him, taking the plate from his hands. 

“Hyung!” Jongin says disapprovingly, turning his head to look at him. “What are you doing?”

“Helping out.” 

“But you’re the guest!” 

“And I can help out,” Minseok nods and wets his fingers to sprinkle Jongin’s face with water, earning himself a gasp and a sprinkle to his own face in retaliation. 

“You know what’s missing now?” Jongin says when they finish cleaning everything up. 

“What?” 

Jongin grins. “Honey buns. Microwaved.” 

Minseok laughs, caught off guard by how sweet Jongin is in his mirth. Jongin grabs two honey buns from the pantry and pops them in the microwave for a couple of minutes, taking them out when the timer dings. He slides one over to Minseok onto a little plate with a knowing smile. 

“Try.”

“Alright,” Minseok says, unable to hold back a smile, but his eyes widen when he pops a bite of the warm, gooey treat into his mouth. “Woah.”

Jongin grins. “Told you!”

They talk some more, the conversation getting more serious as it delves into Jongin’s future academic choices and his dream of joining a dance crew, and once again Minseok is left in awe of Jongin and his passion. Minseok loves what he does, every day represents a new, fresh challenge, but everything is bound to a specific process, rules and principles you have to follow, while there is something so free about what Jongin does, so unapologetic even in the face of unpredictability, the only lead the one of your emotions.

Minseok isn’t really that surprised to find that he has almost forgotten where he is again when he looks at the time and sees it’s quite late, later than he intended. Jongin sees him out. 

“Thank you for staying, hyung,” he murmurs, leaning against the doorway. His hair hangs in his eyes, lids heavy because he’s tired after a long day, and he looks _so_ …“I had a lot of fun.”

Minseok smiles, and can’t help how soft it must look. “Me too. Thank you for inviting me.”

Jongin smiles back and Minseok kind of really wants to pull him into a hug and kiss his forehead, but the only thing he allows himself to do is linger for just a second longer before finally calling it a night. 

“Good night, Jongin.” 

“Good night, hyung.”

When he steps out into the night air, he gives a sigh, the honey on his tongue matching the sweet, warm feeling in his chest, and sets off towards home. 

It’s only when he’s in his bed, under the covers, that he realizes he never took back his scarf. 

The thought makes him smile, though. 

  
  


***

  
  


Jongin is distracted on Friday. He messes up calculations Minseok knows should be child’s play for him by now and he keeps fidgeting in his chair. To add to that, there’s some kind of sweet smell that hangs in the air between them. It’s faint, Minseok can’t quite put his finger on it, but it’s not so easy to ignore, tickling Minseok’s nose time and time again. 

“Jongin,” Minseok says, deciding to put Jongin out of his misery, and takes the pen from him. “Are you okay?”

Jongin looks up at him and Minseok starts. Jongin looks flushed, his eyes almost glassy, and his breath is coming out of him in quiet pants. 

“Hey,” Minseok breathes, brow lining in worry. “Do you have a fever?” 

Jongin swallows and shakes his head. “Hyung…” his voice sounds brittle. “I’m sorry, I…” 

“What is it?”

“I…” Jongin closes his eyes. “My _heat_ is here...” 

Minseok’s eyes widen and his stomach drops. Fuck. The sweet smell makes so much sense now. 

Jongin cringes. “I’m sorry, I don’t… I don’t know why… it shouldn’t...” 

“No, no, it’s okay. It’s okay.” Minseok reassures him, looking around himself as he desperately thinks about what to do. “Uh, we need to get you home.”

Jongin nods, throat bobbing with another swallow. His fingers are digging into the hem of his sweater. 

“Are your parents home? Can they come pick you up?” 

Minseok doesn’t particularly like the idea of making Jongin wait here any more than necessary, but he doesn’t really have a choice. 

Jongin shakes his head, looking miserable. “They’re working until late.”

Fuck. Okay. That plan is out of the question.

“Okay. Okay. Then I’ll take you home,” Minseok says. He’s not really sure he should be near Jongin and his heat for much longer, but he needs to trust his own self-control for Jongin’s sake. Besides, it's really their only option. No way he’s letting Jongin walk outside by himself when in heat, he refuses. If he goes with Jongin at least he’s sure there isn’t going to be any unwanted attention. 

“A-Are you sure?”

Minseok nods and stands up to start gathering their stuff. “Yes, it’s safer for you.”

“I’m sorry I’m giving you so much trouble, hyung,” Jongin says as he stands up as well, but his legs wobble, and he plops back down into the chair. “Oh.”

“You okay?” Minseok asks, looking at him closely. 

“Yeah, just… my legs feel a little weak.”

That’s not good, guess the heat is escalating. They need to hurry up, but if Jongin is having problems just standing, walking does not seem possible. 

An idea pops in Minseok’s head then. 

“You should turn into your animal form.” 

Jongin blinks up at him. “Huh?”

“You should turn into your animal form, I can carry you home like that. It’ll be easier. And safer.” 

Jongin bites his lip, looking unsure, but then he nods. “Okay.”

It happens in less than a second. Just like last time at the mall, Jongin disappears and in his place appears a brown bear cub, swaddled by clothes. The heat scent disappears too and Minseok gives a sigh of relief for that.

“Okay, good.” 

He swings his bag over his shoulder and carefully picks Jongin up, his heart making a little flip at feeling the soft fur against his skin again, and he stuffs Jongin’s clothes and shoes in Jongin’s backpack before swinging that one over his shoulder as well. 

The subway ride lasts longer than Minseok is used to when he’s with Jongin. They get more than a couple of stares, but Minseok ignores them. Jongin does well, spending the whole ride cradled against Minseok’s chest. He lets out a few whines here and there, which Minseok bets have something to do with his heat, but Minseok does his best to soothe him, murmuring comfortingly and stroking his back gently, and he soon settles, muzzle buried into Minseok’s chest. A warm, soft weight. Minseok almost thinks he’s fallen asleep. 

It’s a relief when they finally step inside Jongin’s apartment, after a few failed attempts at getting the right key both for the gate outside and the front door, and Minseok quickly shucks off shoes and bags to go find Jongin’s room, opening the doors of the bathroom and the master bedroom before opening the right one, the ballet and anime posters stuck on the walls giving the room away. 

Minseok crouches down, carefully setting Jongin on his bed, and lets out a sigh. “We made it,” he says and finally lets himself smile, rubbing Jongin gently on his furry little head. “Stay put until your parents return, okay? I’ll see you in a few days.” He stands up to leave. “Text me when you feel better.”

Before he can make any other move though, Jongin shifts again unexpectedly, turning from bear cub into his human form. _Naked_ human form. 

“Hyung, wait.” 

Minseok’s heart stops in his chest and he clamps his eyes shut before grabbing Jongin’s comforter to hastily cover Jongin’s body with it. 

“Jongin!” 

“Hyung,” Jongin says urgently, apparently uncaring of the heart attack he just gave Minseok. God, he’ll never get that image out of his head. “Stay, please. Don’t go.”

Minseok looks at him, caught off guard. The scent of Jongin’s heat is overpowering now that he is human again. It’s really like nothing Minseok has ever smelled. He swallows.

“Jongin… I can’t…” 

“Please,” Jongin insists. “Just for a little while.” 

“I…” 

Minseok can’t, he really can’t stay, not when Jongin is like this. But he makes the mistake of looking into Jongin’s large, beautiful, _imploring_ eyes, and god, there’s nothing for him to do but give in. 

“Alright,” he sighs. This is going to be such a bad idea. This is a disaster waiting to happen. “I’ll stay. But only until your parents get back.” 

Jongin tugs on the sleeve of his sweater and Minseok gingerly sits on the bed next to him, leaving space between them that Jongin closes right away, leaning into his side. Bad, bad, _bad_ idea. 

Minseok does his best to remain calm and in control, breathing through his mouth, but Jongin is being awfully cuddly, resting his head on Minseok’s shoulder with a sigh, the front of Minseok’s sweater bunched tight in the curl of his hand. His nose bumps into Minseok’s neck and Minseok shivers at how warm he is. 

“Jongin…” 

His voice sounds hoarse. He can feel his body responding. To Jongin’s scent, his warmth, his closeness.

“Smells good,” Jongin mumbles, pushing into Minseok’s neck, inhaling deep. He presses closer, like no close is close enough. The comforter slips off one of his shoulders. “Hyung.”

Minseok closes his eyes, taking a deep breath, but he only ends up filling his lungs with Jongin’s scent, now even sweeter, heavier, and the breath he lets out is a shudder. He needs to get out of here. He needs toー

“Hyung,” Jongin’s voice is soft, almost a whine. It captures Minseok’s mind, entrapping it. His lips brush against Minseok’s neck. Dry, and so warm, like the rest of him. “I… I want...”

His bare knee slides over Minseok’s thigh, and Minseok feels the exact moment his restraint, coiled tight, snaps. He surges forward, reaching for Jongin’s face and capturing his lips as they fall onto the bed. It makes Jongin gasp, the comforter spilling open at his sides, but then he moans and he arches against Minseok, desperately sliding their lips together. 

Minseok feels intoxicated, Jongin’s scent filling his nose, Jongin’s plush, sweet mouth pressing against his, asking for more and again more. He touches, hands reverent as they drag on Jongin’s honey skin slowly, so incredibly warm he can’t wrap his head around it, skating over Jongin’s chest, his side, his belly. 

And Jongin responds so beautifully, little gasps and moans breathed right against Minseok’s mouth ‘cause he refuses to let it go, fingers fisted tight in Minseok’s sweater to keep him there.

Minseok presses a heavy kiss on his lips and lets his tongue slide past their seam, licking gently over the roof of Jongin’s mouth, his teeth. The faintest hint of Jongin’s taste, as his hand trails slowly up the underside of Jongin’s thigh. 

It makes Jongin shudder, a noise catching in his throat, and then his mouth goes slack around a long, breathy moan, body trembling in Minseok’s arms. 

Minseok presses another kiss to Jongin’s lips, helplessly affectionate, but as he leaves Jongin’s thigh to cradle his hip, his fingers come in contact with something warm and wet, and he freezes.

Oh, no… 

He hastily pulls himself away, the weight of what he’s done crashing down on him as he comes back to his fucking senses, his heart racing. 

Jongin lies sprawled on the bed, chest heaving as he pants. His lips look tender, red and swollen as they are, his eyelids heavy. And there are ropes of cum staining his stomach.

Minseok’s heart sinks. 

“I’m so sorry,” he breathes as he slides off the bed and backs away. He fucked up. God, he fucked up so badly.

Jongin pushes himself up slowly. “Hyung,” he says, his voice scratchy, and it tugs at Minseok’s chest.

He can’t be here

“I should go.”

Minseok turns and leaves before Jongin can say anything else, grabbing his stuff and getting out of the apartment as fast as he can. 

Jongin’s sweet scent clings to him until well into the night. 

***

  
  


**jongin** (4 days ago, 6:00 p.m.)

_hey hyung_

_it’s over_

_can we talk?_

**jongin** (3 days ago, 9:00 p.m.)

 _hyung?_

**jongin** (1 day ago, 12:30 p.m.)

_the test went well… thank you hyung_

Minseok exits the messaging app and locks his phone, sighing. He’s not proud to say he’s avoiding Jongin, but he can just add that to the list of things he's done that he’s not proud of, right under “jumping Jongin in his home”. 

He feels sick to his stomach everytime he thinks about it. How could he do something like that? No matter how affected he had been, he shouldn't have let himself lose control, shouldn’t ever have laid a finger on Jongin when he was at his most vulnerable. He had made such a great show of wanting to keep Jongin safe, when the only danger he had to watch out for was himself. Jongin trusted him and Minseok…

With a groan, Minseok buries his face in his hands. 

And worst of all, his mind won’t let him forget… what Jongin had looked like, what he had sounded like, what he had felt like under him, the way the briefest touch of Minseok’s tongue had been _enough_. It’s been over a week, but everything is still so clear, every single detail. Minseok can close his eyes and just _see_ Jongin, see his flushed cheeks and needy eyes, hear his breathless sounds echoing in his ears, feel the warmth of his skin under his fingertips, and the taste of his lips on his tongue. 

It makes Minseok’s chest clench with longing, and his heart turn heavy. But for how much he wants to see the little cub, to ask how he's doing, he doesn't think he's got any right to even look at Jongin anymore. In the end, he’s found the solution to the problem. No matter his feelings, he should just leave Jongin alone. It’s the best thing for both of them. 

Minseok lets his hands slide away from his face and picks up his book again, resolved to drown himself in his work to avoid drowning in his thoughts instead. He’s battling with a part of one of the equations when the doorbell rings. He looks away from his papers, half tempted to ignore it, but then again it might be Luhan and he knows what the consequences are of ignoring a Luhan in caretaker mode, so he allows himself a groan and gets off the couch to go to the door. 

His heart stops when he opens it. 

Jongin is standing on the other side, arms crossed over his chest, a paper bag hanging from one hand, and a not so pleased look on his face. 

“Jongin,” Minseok breathes. “What are you doing here?”

“We need to talk, hyung.” 

Minseok feels his heart sink next. He shouldn’t have underestimated Jongin’s stubbornness. It’s one of the little bear’s traits he likes the best. 

“Jongin,” he starts, and it’s hard to get the words out. “Look, it’s better if we don’t.”

Jongin scowls. “No, it’s not. I want to talk to you, hyung. Let me in.”

“Jongin…” Minseok pleads, and he feels positively weary, because knowing he is the one responsible for putting that expression on Jongin’s beautiful face makes his gut twist, and because he’s missed Jongin, he’s missed him so much, and to see him again does nothing but make his heart cave under the weight of his feelings, the finality of them. 

“If you’re not going to let me in, I’ll stay here at your doorstep until you do.”

Minseok blinks. “What...?” 

With an open mouth, he watches as Jongin plops right down on the floor, sitting cross-legged in front of the door. 

Jongin looks up at him with defiant eyes. 

“Jongin… you can’t possibly stay here like this…”

“I can and I _will_.”

Minseok makes to protest again but he just heaves a sigh instead, eyes slipping shut. He is convinced there’s not a creature on this planet that is as stubborn as Jongin. It’s exasperating. And yet he can feel his chest fill with fondness…

“Alright,” he relents, and steps aside. “Come in.”

A triumphant smile spreads on Jongin’s lips and he stands up, entering the apartment. Minseok follows him with his gaze as he closes the door.

Jongin sweeps his eyes around the room before turning back towards Minseok. “I brought back your scarf,” he says, holding out the paper bag in his hand.

“Oh,” Minseok feels a sting in his heart, and isn’t that pathetic? “Right. Thank you.” He takes the bag and sets it down by the door without a second look. 

“Hyung,” Jongin starts. “About Friday…”

“I’m sorry,” Minseok blurts. “I’m sorry for what I did to you. I lost my control but I know it’s no excuse. I shouldn’t have touched you. It won’t happen againー”

“Hyung,” Jongin interrupts him. “If there’s anyone to blame it should be me. I was aware of my heat and I knew I was making things difficult for you, but I still asked you to stay. You might think I wasn’t in my right mind, that the heat made me say things I didn’t mean, but I wasn’t deep enough not to know what was going on. Or what I wanted.” 

Minseok stares at him, tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth, as his brain turns over Jongin’s words like a whirlwind. 

“I mean, I wouldn’t have been so bold in different circumstances,” Jongin continues after a second, and a flush rises on his cheeks. “But… I wanted it. I wanted you to stay… and to do those things with you.” 

Minseok takes a deep breath. “Okay...” he breathes, but doesn’t feel steady at all, mind still processing everything. “Okay...”

Jongin takes a careful step closer. “Okay?”

“Yeah,” Minseok nods, and then shakes his head. “No… No, Jongin, this isn’t… this isn’t right.”

Jongin frowns, stubbornness back on his features. “Why?” he demands, stalking towards Minseok. “Why not?”

“What I didー”

“Hyung,” Jongin interrupts him again. “Did you do what you did just because of my heat? Did you touch me just because my heat was affecting you?”

“No,” Minseok exclaims. “I wanted _you_. I’ve wanted you since long before that, your heat just… tipped it all over.” He winces inwardly. He’s explaining this all wrong. 

“You want me,” Jongin repeats, and he’s so close now. 

“Yeah.”

“So… you like me?”

Minseok swallows. No use hiding it now, is there? “Yeah.”

A smile blooms on Jongin’s face and he fists the front of Minseok’s sweater. “Then what’s not right about this?” he asks. “Hyung, I like you too.”

Jongin leans forward, eyes shifting to Minseok’s lips before slipping close, and Minseok feels his breath catch in his throat, but before Jongin can close the last inch between them, Minseok pulls his head back. 

“Wait,” Minseok breathes. Jongin makes a noise of protest. “Wait, Jongin, this is still…”

“What?” 

“You’re just a cubー”

“What does me being a bear cub have to do with anything?” Jongin scowls. “I know what I want. And you’re not that much older than me. And anyways I don’t care, I want to be with you!!”

Nothing about this is good for Minseok’s heart. Jongin’s resolute eyes, and his words... 

“Hyung?”

Like last time, Minseok feels the exact moment he gives in. He heaves a deep sigh, and with that he pushes aside his worries and hesitation. He wants this, there’s no denying or repressing it, and at this point, he’s tired of trying to. 

“Alright.”

Jongin’s face lights up. “Alright?”

Minseok nods, and then a grunt is wrenched out of his throat as Jongin dives forward and crashes their lips together. It takes him a moment to catch up, his mind reeling from the way Jongin’s mouth moves, so fervent against his own, and then he’s wrapping his arms around Jongin and tilting his head to slot their lips together. 

Jongin is so eager for him, pressing closer, and swiping his tongue over his mouth for access, and Minseok parts to let him in, a groan escaping him at finally being able to taste Jongin in full, Jongin’s pleased little noises as their tongues tangle together filling his ears, pushing him to hold him tighter against himself. 

It’s so freeing, and Minseok lets himself get lost in all of it, so much so that he barely notices Jongin steering them towards the couch. Not until he finds himself falling on his back on it, Jongin draping himself on top of him, a smile stretching the little bear’s lips as he drops kisses all over Minseok’s face. 

That kind of breaks the spell and Minseok drops his head back against the cushion with a groan. “Your mom is going to kill me.”

Jongin giggles. “Stop, she is not. Besides, I think she’s probably already caught on to something. I might have talked a little _too_ well about you,” he says sheepishly. 

Minseok grins up at him. “Is that so?”

Jongin buries his face into Minseok's neck. “Yeah.”

“And what was it that you told her?”

Jongin mumbles. “That you’re very nice…” 

“Mh mh.”

“And smart…”

“And...?”

“And that’s it!” Jongin resurfaces, his cheeks sporting a healthy flush. “I couldn’t really tell my mom about how hot you are!”

Minseok bursts into a laugh and wraps his arms around Jongin, holding him tight against his chest. “You’re adorable,” he says and tilts his chin up to give Jongin another kiss, one the little bear readily responds to. 

When they part, Jongin sighs contently and snuggles into Minseok’s chest, hair tickling Minseok’s cheek. 

“Can I ask you something?” he asks, after a moment spent in comfortable silence. 

Honestly, Minseok feels like he could give Jongin the whole world right now. “What is it?” 

“Can I keep the scarf? I like that it smells of you.”

A grin breaks out on Minseok’s face, heart swelling in his chest. “You can.”

“Thank you,” Jongin drops a kiss on Minseok’s clavicle and pushes himself up on his forearms to look Minseok in the eyes. “I’m going to steal a lot more clothes from you,” he says seriously. “Consider yourself warned.”

Minseok chuckles at him. “You’re welcome to.” His tiger instincts are going to love that. He sighs, reaching out to card a hand through Jongin’s soft hair. “You know, I’m happy what happened led us to this, but I _am_ sorry for how it happened.”

“Hyung,” Jongin says, long suffering. “I told you it’s okay.”

“I know, I know,” Minseok nods. “But it’s not. Not really. There's a process to follow with these kinds of things.”

Jongin smiles down at him, an amused glint in his eyes. “How very mathematician of you.”

Minseok huffs out a laugh. “I am one.”

“It’s very sexy,” Jongin leans down to give him a kiss. “It’s okay, hyung, you can bring me on all the dates you want if you think you need to make up for it.” 

“Very well,” Minseok murmurs against his lips.

“We can start today, but I don’t wanna move, so let’s order take out.” 

“Works for me,” Minseok smiles and takes Jongin’s nape to pull him into a longer, deeper kiss. 

Minseok never would have imagined that accepting to tutor his mother’s friend’s son would bring a new, complicated twist to his life... 

But he’s glad he did. 

**Author's Note:**

> the end! 
> 
> thank you so much for reading this story guys and i hope you enjoyed it, let me know in the comments! 
> 
> this will be my last posting for a while, i am swamped with uni work and i just won't have time to sit down and write sadly. but! my next couple of projects will all be longer ones and i am veeery excited about them, i love the ideas sooo much, i hope you will anticipate! 
> 
> (i have also decided to leave my twitter here hhhh i'm feeling so shy but some people have asked about it before so... if anyone wants to follow me, you can find me [here](https://twitter.com/honeyxiukai). let's be friends!)
> 
> see you! <3


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